Method and apparatus for operating a building air conditioning apparatus



Sept. 27, 1955 T. IMPERATORE ETAL 2,718,756

METHOD AND APPARATUS F OR OPERATING A BUILDING AIR CONDITIONING APPARATUS Filed July 11, 1952 INVENTORS THOMAS IMPERATORE AND ES UN 39 I, T 38 32 BY R M ATTORNEY United States Patent Thomas Imperatore, Whitestone, and Andres Muniz, Bronx, N. Y.

Application July 11, 1952, Serial No. 298,284 2 Claims. (Cl. 62-129) This invention is a method and apparatus for operating a building air conditioning apparatus during the intermediate or low refrigeration load season and its novelty consists in the steps of the process and the combination of the elements as will be more fully hereinafter pointed out.

vOne of the objects of the invention is to eliminate the expense-and necessity for running the compressor of a buildingair conditioning apparatus when the outside wet bulb temperature is 58 F. or lower.

Another object of the invention is by adding certain elements to the structure of the usual standard air conditioning unit or installation for a building and operating this converted unit by a certain method, to accomplish the necessary air conditioning during periods of low load conditions at a very great saving in operating costs.

A further object of the invention is to accomplish this by means of and in a manner of heat exchange between the condenser and the cooler that eliminates the necessity for the operation of the compressor when this method and apparatus are in use.

Referring to the drawings,

Fig. 1 is a schematic layout of the operation of the usual building air conditioning unit;

Fig. 2 is a detail of portions of the condenser and cooler embodying the additional parts added to the usual building air conditioning unit essential to the operation of the process of the invention.

In the drawings, is a condenser of the usual building air conditioning unit which has a bundle of water tubes 11 running therethrough and which has an outlet pipe 12 running from the connection 12 to the roof 12 of the building where it connects to the upper end of a cooling tower 13 and it terminates in a series of holes along its bottom edge forming a downward spray 14. The cooling tower 13 has air intake louvers 15 and a suction fan 16 operated by motor 17 which draws the air upwardly through the spray 14 and out to the open air. The water thus cooled is pumped back through pipe 18 and pump 19 into the bundle of water tubes 11 in the condenser 10 at 18 thereby completing this cycle.

In this way the water in water tubes 11 in the condenser 10 is constantly cooled so as to cool and liquefy the vapors of refrigerant 20 passing into condenser 10 from cooler 21 through a compressor 22 of usual struc ture connecting one end of cooler 21 to the adjoining end of condenser 10. The compressor 22 is of usual construction and not shown in detail.

The cooler 21 is also connected to the condenser 10 by a float trap 23 of usual construction through which the condensed refrigerant 20 can pass in onlyone direction from the condenser 10 into the cooler 21. A bundle of chill water tubes 24 are mounted in the lower half of cooler 21 so as to run its entire length and they are covered by refrigerant 20 which fills only the lower half of cooler 21. These tubes 24 carrying the chilled water leave the cooler 21 at 25 into pipes 25 and pass in parallel through room cooling units 26 equipped with fans 27 driven by motors 28 and return by pipes 29 through pump 2 41 and connection 29* into cooler 21 thereby completing this cycle.

An equalizer 30 controlled by hand operated valve 31 connects the cooler 21 to the condenser 10 and may be used in the usual building air conditioning system as desired.

The foregoing describes the usual structure as found in the great majority of building air conditioning units.

The operation of this usual building air conditioning unit during light, ordinary or heavy load conditions is always the same. In order to secure suflicient chilling of the water circulated from the cooler 21 through pipe 20 and cooling units 26, it is necessary to run the compressor 22 to build up pressure and condense the refrigerant 20, vapors from the cooler 21, and thereby liquefy said vapors so as to return the vaporized refrigerant 20 in liq-- this continuous cycle constantly maintain the temperature in the cooler 21 by varying the pressure in cooler 21.

In our novel structure, in addition to the regular or usual building air conditioning equipment as hereinabove described,.we add a pump 32, a pipe 33 leading from the bottom of cooler 21 and drawing the refrigerant 20 through pipe 33, pump 32 into pipe 34 which leads into a distribution or spray pipe 35 having outlets 36 in the bottom of spray pipes 35 which run the length of cooler 21 immediately above the tube bundle 24. This pump 32 is operated by motor 37 which is controlled by an interlocking switch 38 receiving power from 39, a source of power. A second circuit 4t) runs from the other side of switch 38 to the compressor 22 to operate same. It therefore is impossible for pump 32 and compressor 22 to operate at the same time as the interlocking switch 38 can only be in one position or the other at one end and the same time.

In operating our process the cooling tower fan 16, the condenser water pump 19 and the chilled water pump 41 are all set in operation and the refrigeration is then as follows:

The cool condenser water passing through the tubes 11 of condenser 10 absorbs the latent heat of evaporation from the surrounding refrigerant 20, vapor and gas and condenses it to a liquid which passes through float trap 23 into cooler 21. This reduces the pressure in both the condenser 10 and the cooler 21. The temperature of the refrigerant 20 in the cooler 21 is now lower than the chill water passing through tubes 24 in cooler 21 and therefore the refrigerant 20 absorbs heat from said chill water in tubes 24 and reduces the temperature. This cycle continues until a heat exchange balance is reached and thereby will produce 10 to 15% of the refrigeration capacity of the regular compressor unit.

To improve this cycle we add to the usual building air conditioning unit a refrigerant pump 32 by means of pipes 33 and 34 in the cooler 21 Where the refrigerant 20 level is such that it covers only the lower half of the tube bundle 24. This pump 32 is installed so as to dran the refrigerant 20 from the bottom of cooler 21 and discharge it through a distribution or spray tube 35 located over the tube bundle 24 in the cooler 21.

It will be understood that any recognized source of cold water may be used instead of the cooling tower 13 such as cold well water as is always used in installations where it is available.

This will increase the heat transfer rate between the refrigerant 20 and the chill water in tube bundle 24 sufficiently to attain the required temperature of said chill water and the interlocking switch 38 as above described will prevent the operation of pump 32 and compressor 22 at the same time as these two operations are distinct and separate operations and are not to be used simultaneously. An equalizer tube 30 if not in the unit as installed, must uid form through float trap 23 to the cooler 21 and by,

also be added with a shut-'ofi' valve 31 which must be closedwhen the compressor 22 is in use. This-equalizer 30 will allow a free passageof the gas from refrigerant 20 in the cooler 21 into condenser 10 in installations wheresuch free =passage is otherwise restricted.

Variations may be made in the process and apparatus of our "invention without departing from the object and intent of the same and such variations are 'coveredby the scope =ofthe specification, drawingsand claims herein.

We claim:

The combination in an air conditioning machine of a semi-floodedcooler having "a bundle of tubes in its lower'half, a condenser connected thereto by a-compressor, a cooling tower for condensing refrigerant vapor in said condenser, an equalizer -pipe connecting said cooler and condenser controlled by a hand operated valve, a spray =head mounted over' said bundle of tubes in said cooler and. connected by a pipe leading from the bottomof said cooler through a pump to said spray head and a two way-switch leading to a source of electric power andcontrolling in one position the operation of said spray head pump and in the other position controlling the operation of the compressor.

2. In a turbo refrigeration unit of an air conditioning machine having a cooling tower, fan and water cooler. pump, a semi flooded cooler and pump, a condenser and compressor and an equalizer passage connecting said condenser and said-cooler; the-process of operatingsam'e References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,569,214 Carrier -Jan.. 12, 1926 1,575,818 Carrier -QMar. 8, 1926 1,703,965 Shipley Mar. 5, 1929 2,016,056 Small Oct. 1, 1935 2,072,427 OBrien Mar. 2, 1937 2,075,647 Hibberd Mar. 30, 1937 2,168,438 Carrier Aug. 8,. 1939 2,177,602 Spaan Oct. 24, 1939 2,246,845 Durden June 24, 1941 2,269,053 Crawford Ian. '6, 1942 2,274,391 Zwickl Feb. 24, 1942 2,295,983 Williams Sept. 15', 1942 2,312,313 Beline Mar. 2, 1943 2,662,380 Sutton Dec. 15, 1953 

